2021 NISSAN ALTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 67 complaints · 2 recalls
Most-reported system: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE (15 complaints · 22.4%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 6
  • Fires 1
  • Injuries 4
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2020 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE appears in 15 of 67 owner complaints (22.4%) in this vehicle snapshot. FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: 15 complaints, 22.4% of reports FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 15 · 22.4% · 2 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 9 complaints, 13.4% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9 · 13.4% ENGINE: 5 complaints, 7.5% of reports ENGINE 5 · 7.5% SERVICE BRAKES: 5 complaints, 7.5% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 5 · 7.5% · 1 crash reports STEERING: 5 complaints, 7.5% of reports STEERING 5 · 7.5% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports BACK OVER PREVENTION: 4 complaints, 6.0% of reports BACK OVER PREVENTION 4 · 6.0% POWER TRAIN: 3 complaints, 4.5% of reports POWER TRAIN 3 · 4.5% SUSPENSION: 3 complaints, 4.5% of reports SUSPENSION 3 · 4.5% SEAT BELTS: 2 complaints, 3.0% of reports SEAT BELTS 2 · 3.0% · 1 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 36 complaints, 53.7% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 36 · 53.7% · 3 crash reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 15 22.4% 2 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9 13.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 5 7.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 5 7.5% 1 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 5 7.5% 1 crashes · 1 fires
BACK OVER PREVENTION 4 6.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 3 4.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 3 4.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 2 3.0% 1 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 36 53.7% 3 crashes · 0 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2021; the first recall shown was reported in Mar 2021. 2021-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2023-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2023-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2024-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2024-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2024-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2025-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2025-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2025-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2025-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2026-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2026-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2026-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 Owner reports Mar 2021 Jul 2026 Recall campaign 21V138000 ◆ Recall campaign 21V138000 Recall campaign 23V628000 ◆ Recall campaign 23V628000 Investigation AQ22003 ● Investigation AQ22003 Investigation PE23023 ● Investigation PE23023
  • Campaign 23V628000 was reported 45 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2021-Q4 Owner reports 2
2022-Q1 Owner reports 2
2022-Q2 Owner reports 1
2022-Q3 Owner reports 2
2023-Q1 Owner reports 2
2023-Q2 Owner reports 4
2023-Q3 Owner reports 7
2023-Q4 Owner reports 1
2024-Q1 Owner reports 2
2024-Q2 Owner reports 3
2024-Q3 Owner reports 3
2024-Q4 Owner reports 4
2025-Q1 Owner reports 5
2025-Q2 Owner reports 6
2025-Q3 Owner reports 4
2025-Q4 Owner reports 3
2026-Q1 Owner reports 3
2026-Q2 Owner reports 8
2026-Q3 Owner reports 5
Recall campaign 1 21V138000
Recall campaign 1 23V628000
Defect investigation 1 AQ22003
Defect investigation 1 PE23023
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (2)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 21V138000

    Report date
    Component:
    STEERING
    Consequence:
    A detached tie rod ball joint can cause a loss of steering control, and increase the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will tighten the left and right-side tie rod ball joint fasteners, or install new fasteners as necessary, free of charge. The began March 31, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7769. Nissan's number for this recall is PC795.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 23V628000

    Report date
    Component:
    BACK OVER PREVENTION
    Consequence:
    A rearview camera that does not properly display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    Dealers will inspect the rearview camera and harness for damage and replace them as necessary. If no damage is found, the dealer will apply protective tape and reroute the rearview camera harness. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed October 19, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R23C3.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 67 complaints · page 1 of 3

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources